Cinemax Unveils Their 2018 Programming Lineup Including The Returning Strikeback

Last updated:August 7, 2019

Cinemax has quietly been stepping up their original programming over the last few years and 2018 looks to continue that trend with some new and returning favorites on deck to keep you busy on Friday nights. On the new, side we get a new thriller series called Rellik as well as a new drama from the mind of J.K. Rowling called C.B. Strike. Fan favorites Strike Back and Outcast will also be coming back with Strike Back kicking off 2018. Learn more about the new shows below and let us know which ones you're looking forward to.

STRIKE BACK (debuting Feb. 2) returns for a ten-episode fifth season of high-intensity action, introducing new members of Section 20. Disavowed and disbanded, the unit is restored to track down a notorious terrorist after a brutal prison break. Tasked with covert military intelligence and high-risk operations, the resurrected Section 20 embarks on a lethal manhunt that will uncover a vast web of interconnected criminal activity. As the team journeys across the Middle East and Europe, it uncovers a deadly conspiracy that threatens to change the face of modern warfare forever. Warren Brown (“Luther,” “The Dark Knight Rises”), Daniel MacPherson (“Infini”), Roxanne McKee (HBO’s “Game of Thrones”; “Crossfire”) and Alin Sumarwata (“Burning Man”) star. MJ Bassett returns to executive produce and direct.

RELLIK (April 13), an original six-part thriller, stars Richard Dormer (HBO’s “Game Of Thrones”) as Gabriel, an obsessive and disfigured UK police detective, and Jodi Balfour (CINEMAX’s “Quarry”) as Elaine, his bright and intense partner. Focusing on a serial killer, the story begins with the capture of the suspect and moves backward in time to the crime itself. Obsessed with his hunt for the killer, Gabriel’s story becomes intrinsically bound to that of his suspect, asking the question, “What are the experiences that forge the people we all become?” Four episodes are directed by Sam Miller, and two by Hans Herbots.

C.B. STRIKE (June) is a drama series based on the best-selling crime novels written by Harry Potter creator J.K. Rowling under the pseudonym Robert Galbraith. Starring Tom Burke (“Only God Forgives”), the story centers on Strike, a war veteran turned private detective, operating out of a tiny office in London’s Denmark Street. Although wounded both physically and psychologically, Strike’s unique insight and his background as a military police investigator prove crucial in solving three complex cases that have baffled the police. The series launches with three one-hour episodes based on the first book in the trilogy, “The Cuckoo’s Calling” (directed by Michael Keillor), followed by adaptations of the remaining two books, “The Silkworm” (directed by Kieron Hawkes) and “Career of Evil” (directed by Charles Sturridge), both of which will consist of two one-hour episodes.

OUTCAST (July) continues the suspenseful mystery of what lies behind the town of Rome’s supernatural manifestations in the second season of the Skybound/Image comic title by Robert Kirkman and artist Paul Azaceta. Patrick Fugit (“Gone Girl,” HBO’s “Cinema Verité”) stars as Kyle Barnes, a young man who has been plagued by demonic possession all his life. Now, with the help of Reverend Anderson, played by Philip Glenister (“Kingdom of Heaven”), a preacher who believes he is a soldier in God’s holy war against the forces of evil, Kyle struggles to protect those he holds most dear, now that otherworldly threats prove greater than anticipated. His struggle will grow into a fight for all of his hometown, as he discovers the haunting secrets of his own past.

Editor in Chief of R.A.G.E. Works and host of Toys & Tech of the Trade on the RAGE Works Podcast Network. When not yelling into a microphone on-air Rich can be found tinkering on the site and ensuring that the gears of RAGE Works run smoothly.